Looking Back — Sept. 16, 2016

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 16/09/2016 (3510 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

In 1986: Mulroney addresses ag woes during BU visit

SIXTY YEARS AGO

Bill Andrews, who spends his summer in Riding Mountain National Park and his winters as a member of the Erickson curling club, captured the Manitoba Curlers’ golf championship at Wasagaming. The highlight of the day was a hole-in-one at the 17th hole by Jack E. Elviss of the Wheat City curling club.

FIFTY YEARS AGO

A replica of Brandon House No. 3 will be built by the Rotary Club next spring as a centennial project. The project, to be called Fort Brandon, was announced by the Rotary Club and is expected to cost about $6,000. The Brandon House, after which the City of Brandon was named, was originally a trading post built by the Hudson’s Bay Company in 1793 and opened by “Mad” Donald McKay on Oct. 16 of that year. The first of three Brandon Houses was burned to the ground by roving bandits led by Cuthbert Grant in 1816.

FORTY YEARS AGO

The manufacturing economy of Portage la Prairie has been given a boost with the announcement that McCain Foods is building a $12-million processing plant in the city.

Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau presented Team Canada captain Bobby Clarke with the Canada Cup trophy after Canada ended the series against Czechoslovakia in overtime last night.

THIRTY YEARS AGO

Prime Minister Brian Mulroney, who was at Brandon University to make a statement on International Peace Day, quickly shifted the topic to problems facing agriculture and that’s what dominated when the floor opened for questions from the approximately 200 students packed into the Queen Elizabeth II Music Building recital hall.

It was a wet, chilly wait outside a warm, dry auditorium for a glimpse of Prime Minister Brian Mulroney, but it was worth it, according to some of about 150 J.R. Reid School students.

TWENTY YEARS AGO

Today was the first full day of the new enhanced E-911 service in Brandon, which can speed up response times to calls with new computer hardware and links to other emergency services.

Cuts to the local education budget are now directly affecting the classroom. More than 8,100 students took their seats in Brandon schools at the beginning of September and found themselves in larger classes with fewer teachers. The division is now staffing with 34 fewer teaching positions than it had three budgets ago.

TEN YEARS AGO

Mike Abbey has never officially held elected office, but the City of Brandon’s latest mayoral candidate says he already has an extensive track record of getting things done. Abbey, 46, confirmed to the Sun that he’ll challenge incumbent Dave Burgess and a field of four other candidates for Brandon’s highest office.

The province will contribute an additional $325,000 to Brandon every year for the operation of ambulance services in the city, Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Scott Smith says. Smith made the announcement yesterday on behalf of Health Minister Tim Sale at the No. 1 Firehall on Princess Avenue to the energetic applause of Brandon’s first responders and firefighters who had gathered to hear the minister speak.

The Trails West Motor Inn has undergone some major renovations over the past year and now has a changed name to reflect its more modern image. The inn’s name is changing to the Trails West Inn. The name of the nightclub has also been changed from The North 40 to simply, The 40.

In business on Pacific Avenue since 1997, Fleece Line, which produces authentic aboriginal clothing including mukluks, moccasins, mitts and other clothing, closed the doors on its Brandon factory yesterday. Fleece Line also has a factory in Winnipeg and has been operating both factories for the past two years. Owner Sean McCormick said staffing problems was the catalyst for closing the Brandon factory and moving all operations to Winnipeg.